AWID Forum: Co-creating Feminist Futures

20 November 2020

Read in: English French Spanish

In September 2016, the 13th AWID international Forum brought together in Brazil over 1800 feminists and women’s rights advocates in a spirit of resistance and resilience.

This section highlights the gains, learnings and resources that came out of our rich conversations. We invite you to explore, share and comment!

What has happened since 2016?

One of the key takeaways from the 2016 Forum was the need to broaden and deepen our cross-movement work to address rising fascisms, fundamentalisms, corporate greed and climate change.

With this in mind, we have been working with multiple allies to grow these seeds of resistance:

Our Seed Initiatives, has helped 20 ideas that emerged at the Forum to grow into concrete actions
The video “Defending people and planet” and guide “Weaving resistance through action” put courageous WHRDs in the spotlight and present concrete strategies they use to confront corporate power.
With our animations about the State of Our Feminist Movements and Climate and Environmental Justice, movements now have creative tools to support their advocacy work.
The compiling artistic expressions of our #MovementsMatter series continues to inspire stronger and more creative organizing around the world.
Movements can also benefit from new methodologies on Visioning Feminist Futures (Coming up soon!)

And through our next strategic plan and Forum process, we are committed to keep developing ideas and deepen the learnings ignited at the 2016 Forum.

What happens now?

The world is a much different place than it was a year ago, and it will continue to change.

The next AWID Forum will take place in the Asia Pacific region (exact location and dates to be announced in 2018).

We look forward to you joining us!

About the AWID Forum

AWID Forums started in 1983, in Washington DC. Since then, the event has grown to become many things to many peoples: an iterative process of sharpening our analyses, vision and actions; a watershed moment that reinvigorates participants’ feminisms and energizes their organizing; and a political home for women human rights defenders to find sanctuary and solidarity.

Learn more about previous Forums

Hevrin Khalaf

8 December 2020

Read in: English French Spanish

Category: Civil & Political Rights
Region: Asia; West Asia
Date of birth: 1984
Date of death / disappearance: 2019
Cause of death / disappearance

Hevrin Khalaf was a prominent Syrian Kurdish political leader in the autonomous region of Rojava where Kurdish women are risking their lives to resist the Turkish offensive and build a feminist system.

She was Secretary-General of the Future Syria Party (FSP), a group that aimed to build bridges, reconcile different ethnic groups and work towards a “democratic, pluralistic, and decentralized Syria.”

Hevrin was a symbol of this reconciliation effort. She also worked to promote equality between women and men and was a representative for visiting journalists, aid workers, and diplomats.

Hevrin was also a civil engineer from Derik, and was one of the founders of the Foundation for Science and Free Thought in 2012.

On 12 October 2019 she was tortured and murdered by the Turkish-backed militia, Ahrar al-Sharqiya during a military operation against Syrian Democratic Forces in Rojava.

“The killing of Khalaf is a turning point in Syria’s modern history. It once again demonstrated the old Kurdish proverb “no friends but the mountains.” I will always be a friend of Khalaf and her vision of a better world.” - Ahed Al Hendi